Microsoft Comments On Adam Orth Tweets

Game Informer - "We are aware of the comments made by an employee on Twitter. This person is not a spokesperson for Microsoft, and his personal views are not reflective of those of the company. We have not made any announcements about our product roadmap, and have no further comment on this matter."

What should worry a lot of people is the fact that MS is not denying it. I mean, if they know how big this issue is, and they won't require an "always online" thing to play games, why not just come out and say it?

because they are still playing it off like there is no such thing as a new xbox which is retarded because everyone knows there is and knows its coming so the real question is, why not just reveal it already? your competition did, so its your turn. only thing i can thing of is they are reluctant to now because the ps4 trumps it and now they are back to the drawing board to change what they can to make it competitive

always online will be the death of them. that will even make me stay away and ive been an xbox supporter since it began

@Objective, So, according to what you say, MS shouldn't come out and say that the always online feature is fake is because everybody is talking (crap) about the next X-Box? I'm not PR expert, but if there are a lot of negative responses regarding a product, the manufacturer should come out and say that, whatever bad rumor is going around, is not true

I said before and still think it's true, to what I said. If they start admitting and denying rumors, people are going to keep pushing and pushing until everything is known about the next xbox, before the official reveal. Everything (most likely) will be brought out at the xBox reveal. People just be patient.

I wouldn't be surprised if this was all one big troll from Microsoft. We all know they read the internet. They're aware of what is said about them on message forums.

Think about it...

This news about "always on" leaks. People get upset about it. People say "I'll never buy the NextBox". Microsoft stays silent and the rumors get worse.

Then, they show off the NextBox and announce "the system can be played online or offline, but the benefits of being online..." and talk about their new direction with XBL.

The result? Microsoft comes out looking like champions of the game industry because they AREN'T implementing a rumored feature (which took no effort and probably was never real in the first place). The blogs and websites all chime in: "see guys? I told you it was fake. Microsoft loves us. They would never do something so evil. I'm going to buy a NextBox. No, wait. I'm going to buy three".

MS only needs to worry about crap talk if it is actually capable of hurting their market share. Since neither the next Xbox nor the PS4 are in the market, crap talk can't do any present damage. Any potential future damage can be undone when MS announces their Xbox (assuming of course the announcement shows that the crap talk is untrue).

On the other hand, the crap talk is generating a lot of attention towards the Xbox. And that is surely what MS wants leading up to the time they make their announcement.

Hence, even if the rumors are untrue, there is no need for MS to debunk them now. Let the people speculate all they want. It serves MS purpose of getting the attention they want without being capable of causing damage that can't be remedied.

I am not a fan of the next xbox being 'always on', and this guy did kind of act like a douche, but what I really can't understand is how he has generated so much controversy over this. Its like the epitome of making mountains out of a molehill. If you don't want an always-on 720, get a PS4

Weird. Back when Ps3 was launching there was a similar sort of sh7tstorm on the internet over various choices Sony made, like the cost because of the bluray drive etc. It almost certainly impacted sales of the machine early on.

This sort of ominous internet hate building up everywhere for the idea of an 'always on' console is really, really bad news for Microsoft, who benefitted from internet animosity directed at Sony this gen.

Major Nelson's own site is full of comments voted very highly stating that they are unlikely to want the next Xbox should this be true.

It doesn't really worry me. It is what it is. This is how MS handles almost every rumor that implodes on them, regardless of merit. Basically say they have no comment, then say how they love their customers, and they will provide the best thing since slice bread when they finally announce a product. Nothing new really.

If I had to guess they are probably just basing this response on history. They're hoping it will die down in a few days. If it's not true, no biggie really. If it is true, they'll find a way to spin it. I'd like to think they'd rethink the policy, but knowing MS they are very unlikely to do so based on past experiences of criticisms on their methods.

If it is true, I have to admit it will be extremely interesting if consumers adopt it willingly. Other than that I will reserve actual judgement until I know, but will still say it's a bad idea in general.

I might (will) get flamed for this but whatever... typically when comparing xbox and Sony fans the one difference that separates them (its not definitive) is that Sony fans TEND to defend Sony come Hell and High Water; while Xbox fans SEEM to be more reasonable and realize that a feature/aspect about the Xbox is bad.

I game on both systems and with the lastest rumor about the ALWAYS ONLINE feature for the xbox, I can safely say the best thing about the new 720 is that it will save me 400-500 dollars by not buying it.

I fully rexognize the HUGE faults with this course of actions by microsoft and am not hesistant to say so... but Sony fans seem extremely hard pressed to say anything bad about their console. Even the cross game chat that is recognized as a great feature gets down played by Sony fans and how its a pointless feature. No matter what plan/avenue Sony takes, their fans support them 1000% and if anyone criticizes them they cry foul.

Again, this is not a generalization of ht whole Sony and Xbox fandom, its just my prospective on events for the past 8 years.

Well...in business you never say never to something that may actually be in the companies sites in the future. But I get what your saying.

Also, unless this is some masterful stroke on the part of MS, as detailed by dedicated above, I'd imagine their PR department must have their heads spinning right now. If half the negative rumors are true, there is no doubt that they know what is being said about them, and they are the ones that have to spin it to make MS look all rosy come launch day.

I personally don't find these rumors fun at all. I don't expect MS to say anything before they're ready, but the thought of some of these things that have come out really don't put me at ease. Gaming should be fun, and not based on extreme corporate mentalities to further a multi-national conglomerates agenda.

I think MS might be playing it smart with the silence. Think about it: Everyone is hating on them right now for their possible implementation of this always-on feature on their next home console. So, when they do go and announce the next xbox, and say that they never had an always-on feature or that they "listened" to the gaming community and removed the feature, they come out of it as heroes. Their console might not have anything special, or maybe it'll be monster specs and features wise, we don't that. But when announced, people on the internet are going to be talking about whether it has any of those rumored restrictions such as always-on and used game blocking. It'll gain it a lot more publicity.

Maybe I'm thinking too much into it and maybe MS aren't really playing such dirty politics. But then again, this is a company that's been here for a long time, so they'll never want to intentionally alienate their users. I guess we'll find out around E3 time.

Microsoft, stop acting like you don't even know this guy exists. He works for you, he knows what's in the Nextbox, he is pretty much advertising always on as a "good thing" because you told him too. You are just mad because he didn't word it in the PR way you hoped he would. You are screwing over your customers just like you did with RROD and Xbox live. You deserve to lose.

Microsoft will not comment on comments or speculations. Granted this is damage control but the point is, gamers are not ready for such control. Who wants a product, that they spend hard earned dollars on, to be controlled. Its like here buy our box. Oh wait you cannot play the box you spent money on unless you have internet. Oh wait you have to buy our service. Oh wait your games will not work without both above. While I do have a 360, this is deterring me from buying their box. Maybe they were looking at that 99.99 Xbox as a way to see if people will buy into subscription based models.. I think Microsoft will offer the Xbox at a an affordable price and sell it for less; demanding an always on business model. Heck, they should have there own internet structure. Who knows..I don't like a controlled environment..Sound off.

When I saw middle aged men furiously demonstrating some dancing game on Kinect at one of the E3 shows, veins protruding from their temples like the fat guy with boils from the film Dune. The pressure, the late nights , the ridiculousness of it. The arrogance of thinking that's what Gamers want. Some sort of always online scam with yearly subscription is exactly the kind of thing M$ would dream up. It's not that I hate xbox gamers or even the generic hardware that M$ botch together . I hate that company. I hate the politics they stand for. Sony is also just another large company in many ways. But there us a sense that there are some employees and designers with skill and heart.

Didn't someone from MS earlier say they neither knew the guy or that he was employed at MS? Now there's an official statement saying that he is?

Yeah, E3 can't come soon enough.

@insomnium2: MS will certainly ignore the online required and use games rumor during their main presentation.

The question is if their main presentation is casual/media support focused, will the Xbox faithful be overjoyed and distracted by third party offerings to realize little to no new 1st party support or MS ignoring the rumors post presentation?

Everyone keeps saying "wait till E3 and MS will blow our minds" like they've done for 3 e3s straight. Will the x360 faithfull still hold their breaths for the next e3 if the nextbox indeed is always online, full of Kinect and has no core games other than the usual Halo, Geow and Forza?

Ms has gone casual. I give them this e3 to prove themselves. Why are they so silent yet again?

The past 3 E3's were biding time until the next Xbox can come about. If 90+% of the games on the next Xbox are the same as the PS4, how are they going casual?

Sony tried to go the same route with Move, but it didn't work out as well, and you act as if MS fans should be mad that they get the huge AAA titles they bought a 360 for in the first place, I love Halo, Gears, Forza and games like that, it's the reason I bought a 360, so try and spin it however you want.

Why is Microsoft silent about rumors around a console they have yet to announce? Maybe because they haven't announced it yet! Geez, that almost makes sense right?

I didn't see Sony scrambling to rebut the rumors that the PS4 would block used games and require an always online connection last year.

Every console maker shifts focus at a certain time, all in all Microsoft has done a good job of putting out games and features that make owning a 360 worthwhile.

I live in the bay area and even though my internet connection is great sometimes it does go out. I remember a lot of times I'll be playing a 360/PS3 game and i'll get an error message saying my connection or whatever has gone out. I say "oh" but I keep on playing.

If this new Xbox has this always online and especially blocking used games then it definitely will not get any support from me.

I personally think that this guy really screwed the pooch for MS. MS being silent about the nextbox before was a good thing, it meant MS wasn't worried and that they were taking their time to unveil a ton of stuff. But now because of this guy and the internet being able to catch fire with a tiny spark I think it really is in MS's best interest to announce a showing before E3.

Yeah, I do the same. I'll be playing a game like Metro and 'bam' lost connection. But, I just keep on playing.. hopefully that's true with the next xbox, as well. Rather it's my fault or on MS is irrelevant, as connection has been lost.

This is quickly turning into a nightmare for MS, whether it's true or not. This story is EVERYWHERE! I wouldn't be surprised if Orth is let go for this. What made him think this was a good idea to discuss on Twitter? Jesus.

If the new xbox is always online, than I am all out for that console. I subscribe to xbox live like everyone else, I turn on my console and go online like everyone else. But there is a huge difference between something I choose to do that has no hold on me from playing my games and something that I don't have any other choice but to do.

Guess what, my internet went down for like an hour yesterday and I pay for good internet. But there was this thing called a thunderstorm that took my internet down. I could still play my games though, with an always online xbox I couldn't. I am not going to pay Microsoft, Sony, Nintendo, or anyone money to screw me out of time because of circumstances beyond my control.